BOOKS

Topical film of the day – Uruguayan film EL BANO DEL PAPA

posted 14 Mar 2013, 03:59 by Julian Whiting

EL BANO DEL PAPA (15) 2007 URUGUAY CHARLONE C/FERNANDEZ E. £19.99
Set in rural Uruguay in the late 1980s, this deadpan morality tale
from director Cesar Charlone shows how an impending visit from the Pope
to the small town of Melo stirs up a flurry of activity among the town’s
poorest residents, all of whom hope to grab this one opportunity to
make their fortune by catering to the needs of the flood of pilgrims
expected to arrive in the town for the Pope’s visit. Beto (Cesar
Troncoso), whose meagre livelihood has hitherto depended solely on his
battered old bicycle, hits upon the idea of a paying toilet as the best
guarantee of striking it rich – and proceeds to wheel and deal his way
into paying for it with all the family’s hard-earned savings.